


Skin

by Jane St Clair (3jane)



Category: Marvel, X-Force (Comics), X-Men (Comicverse)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-08-12
Updated: 2011-08-12
Packaged: 2017-10-22 13:09:18
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/238366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/3jane/pseuds/Jane%20St%20Clair
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Of sunburns and bright light.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Skin

And Julio wishes Shatty weren't so damned *flexible*, because then it  
would be OK to help him with the sunscreen.  It wouldn't be sleazy,  
either, just friendly, one friend helping another.  Keeping him from  
getting hurt.  All that fair skin.  Shatterstar's had a low-grade  
sunburn that the healing factor doesn't seem to help since their first  
day in the desert, and after a week it was obvious he wasn't ever  
going to tan.  Strawberry blond and all that.  

A lot of freckles.  Not that on his legs, which Julio's seen more than  
a few times before, since Shatty's idea of practice clothes runs to  
shorts whenever possible, but a lot on the stretch of his shoulders.    
Like the wingspan of some alien bird.  He's wide there, all upper-body  
strength and fighter muscles.  Not exactly out-there for X-Force, but  
he doesn't think, somehow, that Sam 'Berto or Jimmy have such  
delicate-looking skin.  Translucent, almost, even with the thin sweat-  
layer that the over-bright sun drags out of him almost before dawn.    
Pink around his neck.  One pink hand gripping the back of his neck and  
massaging softly, trying to work out something that's gotten down  
under the skin into the muscle.  

He could offer to help with that.  No matter how well your arms bend,  
nobody can give themselves a decent neck-rub.  It doesn't have to mean  
anything, but there's no one to see them on this road anyway.  He  
hasn't seen anyone for half an hour.  Twenty minutes of empty pavement  
before he pulled over so they could stretch.  Then ten-minutes of  
what's starting to look like a stage-show, except that Shatty's so  
utterly unselfconscious doing it.  

Just that one second when he grunts, and it's all the opening Julio  
needs.

"C'mere, Star."

"Julio?"  Wide silver irises almost invisible in the high-noon glare.

"Just . . . c'mere."  Holds his hands out.  No breath in his lungs to  
keep him standing while he waits.  For a long, long minute he thinks  
Shatty's going to say no.  Right until the man comes over and stands  
in front of him, letting Julio's outstretched hands lay palm-flat  
against his bare chest.  Heart-beat under his right palm.  "Turn  
around."  And he does.  Even bows his head forward a bit, making the  
red-pale base of his neck naked.  The open shirt billowing a little  
whenever the air moves.

He pushes the collar down so both his hands will fit on that flesh.    
Fingers around the neck tendons to brace, and he digs his thumbs in.    
Feels the knot almost immediately; not serious enough for the healing  
factor to kick in, he guesses, but it's an almost crippling ache.  Too  
many hours asleep sitting up.  They're going to have to stop trading  
off the driving and find someplace to crash for a while.

The sunscreen makes a lubricant that's some kind of wonderful between  
his hands and Shatty's skin.  No friction at all, just warmth and the  
faint cocoa-butter smell of the lotion's base.  So it's not hard, even  
though he has to reach up a bit to reach.

Or does until Shatty folds himself down to his knees with something  
almost like a whimper.  Neck and shoulders limp and his head down, all  
that mess of hair hanging over one shoulder out of the way.  And this  
really isn't right.  Not just the submission of it or the fact that  
Shatty's bare knees are going to be etched with gravel afterwards.    
With him down like this, it's way too easy for Julio to step forward  
and offer his legs as support, asking Shatty to lean back against him  
and just relax while he works.

He does have to finish eventually, but it's a long time.  And when he  
does, he throws all the drawn-out ache in his hands towards the sun,  
the way he learned a long time ago, and then just stands with  
Shatterstar limp against him.  Drops his hands into the tied-up mass  
of hair and draws the big head up, holds it against his waist for a  
minute.  Lets go and watches Shatty stand up.

Gravel in his knees, like Julio knew there would be, but he doesn't  
seem to notice it.  Only brushes at them absently and follows Julio  
back towards their truck.  Flashes red-gold in the sun before he ducks  
inside the cab.

**

In the spirit of no-more-sunstroke, Julio bought Shatty a hat around  
the time they crossed the Mexican border.  One of those white-straw  
cowboy jobs, bent up a bit at the sides.  Just a little blank line of  
a band on it.

Since then, the hat's been a fixture.  Pushed low on Shatty's head,  
keeping the sun off or shading him while he sleeps, or maybe just  
because he likes the look of it.  Julio caught him once watching  
himself in a store window.  Little grin on the pale lips.  And if the  
hat's getting sweat-and dirt-stained, then so much the better.    
Looking more real by the day.

He gets to smell it for the first time when they come down to the  
river.  Pull the truck off the road and walk in through the scrub  
brush.  It's the first time all day Julio's been grateful for his  
boots and jeans.  He was hot in the truck, but he'll be intact when he  
gets there.  Whereas Shatty's going to look like shredded meat.  Those  
legs are exposed from the tops of the unlaced combat boots to the  
ragged edge of his cut-offs, and all the sunblock in the world isn't  
armour against mesquite.

At the river, he watches Shatty's healing factor kick it.  Open cuts  
turn into white lines in the time it takes to breathe, though there's  
a lattice of white against the sunburn for another half hour.  Aching  
enough that Shatty bends and rubs at the healed places absently.  Then  
wades into the river, boots and all, and stands thigh-deep like it's  
heaven.  Cold.  Takes the hat off and dips it in, pours the collected  
water over his head.  

This instant of drenching, and then Julio's treated to that startling  
grin, surrounded by bedraggled reddish hair, and Shatty's coming back  
towards him with the hat refilled.  Wraps a big hand around the back  
of Julio's neck and holds him steady while Star pours the water over  
him.  And while it isn't ice, it's genuinely cold, and it takes his  
breath away it's so good..

After, with the water beading on their skin and Julio's jeans soaked  
from wading in, he realizes that the faint smell of the water from the  
hat is still clinging to his shoulders.  Not ugly like he would have  
thought, just faint and vividly Shatterstar.  Like something brilliant  
and super-heated.

**

He hadn't realized how much he missed sleeping in a bed until he fell  
into this one.  Just this one bed in a hotel that might've made even  
Domino pause, but still good.  Warm air moving sluggishly through the  
room.  Warm Shatterstar sprawled beside him, sleeping on his stomach  
with just the cut-offs on.  That mess of hair obscuring his face  
shifts every time he settles deeper against the mattress.

In quarters this close, it doesn't mean anything that Julio lays an  
arm across that barely-sunburned back before he dozes off.  It's just  
a need to stretch, and maybe something protective asserting itself.

**

And wakes with his nose buried in skin and hair that still smells like  
the sun and dust outside.  Behind the curtains, it's obviously light  
out, but getting late from the angle of bright slits he can see on the  
floor.  In the first warm minutes of awakeness, he's prepared to  
settle for that view and the comfort of his position.  

Only after thinks about what it means that he's pressed himself  
against Shatterstar's back with his face in the curve of neck and  
shoulder.  That one of his legs is pushed between those pale ones.    
That one of his hands is snaked up along the man's ribs, stroking his  
chest.  Very fine, very pale skin, radiating warmth from its faint  
burn.  Small, tight nipples that almost blend into the pattern of  
muscle.  Until the fifth or tenth or twentieth stroke of Julio's palm,  
when one hardens under his touch.

Warmth and sun-smell of the room feeding his stoking.  While he moves  
from palm to fingers, taking that nipple and rolling it gently, then a  
little harder as a sleepy Star arches back against him.

"Julio . . ."

"Shhh."

Burrowing his face back into Shatty's hair.  The warm sunscreen-  
smell's seeped into it at some point; this is going to be the smell of  
bright light to Julio forever.  And Shatty against him is relaxed,  
moving just a bit, always towards.  Closing the small gaps in space  
between them, while Julio plays with the bit of flesh in his grip,  
teasing it out to a point and then twisting gently.  

He loves the little gasp he gets in response.  Tries again, harder,  
and gets a full-body *rub* back against him, Star's ass pushing  
against his groin and the whole body moving.

He's going to try it a third time, but Shatty's hand snaked in and  
catches him.  Pushes his hand down to the other nipple and closed the  
fingers deliberately around it.  Which is all the encouragement he  
needs.  Especially since it only takes a minimal wriggle to get his  
other hand under Shatty's arm to reach the nipple in question, leaving  
his top hand free.  To go wandering across the tight fairness of  
Star's belly, though the almost-invisible hair to the waist of his  
shorts.

Softly, "Julio . . ."

"Shhh."

"No."

It's enough to startle Julio out of this tummy-massage he was  
offering, and he ends up pushed away and propped up on one elbow,  
watching while a wide-eyed and obviously hard Star rolls over to face  
him.  And puts an arm between them.  Deliberately.

And Julio realizes what exactly in the name of god he's been doing.    
Groping his best friend.  About one small step away from jerking him  
off.  All just for the sake of those little wriggles against him and  
the whimpering sound of Star's breath and the wonderful way his skin  
smells.

"Dios, Star.  I'm sorry."  Scrabbling back.  Frustrated when his back  
hits the wall, thinking that Cable'd yell at him for being stupid  
enough to get trapped, and who in their right mind puts a double bed  
against the wall anyway?  "I just . . ."

Sigh.  "Julio."  A big hand closes over his wrist and pulls him back  
down to a half-lying sprawl.  Only releases him when it's obvious he's  
going to stay that way, and then strokes up Julio's arm to his  
shoulder before falling back between them.

"Si."

"Tell me this is what you want."

It shouldn't be that terrible a request, but it is.  He isn't even  
sure he has the words to explain this wanting.  Hasn't ever been able  
to think about it terms of guys, just in terms of Star.  And if he  
knows the one is definitely the other, well . . .

Well.

What he really wants is to get his face back against that skin and lie  
there until his courage comes back.  Isn't sure he won't get pushed  
back if he tries it.

"Te quiero."

Easy once it's out.  Not right, quite, but he's not ready for the  
other, and wanting's enough, for now.  One of Shatterstar's big, blunt  
hands reaches out and catches the back of Julio's head.  Pulls him in  
and kisses him.

He can't quite believe they haven't done this before now.  They must  
have.  Sometime in the truck or in the water or that afternoon behind  
the cafe up north.  Must have.  Because he's sure he's had this taste  
in his mouth before.  Clear-pale and warm, reaching down his throat  
towards his heart.  Very soft skin against his lips.  Not female at  
all, but not raspy, either.  Just open-mouthed, and how could he have  
wanted to make love to this man without ever kissing him first?  Not  
fair of him at all to have skipped such an important step.  Mouth  
roving over his face and neck, and sometimes just their cheeks rubbing  
together.  The closest he's ever been to swallowing someone else's  
tongue.

Catches his breath while Shatty and the mane of his hair settle near  
his left ear.  Breathing hard against him, more or less on top of him.    
Shatterstar says something, but very, very softly.  Like it's not  
particularly important, and anyway it doesn't really sound like *amo*.    
Just an extra wordless breath too close to his ear.

They have to get his jeans and Star's shorts off, which is harder than  
it should be.  Too damned hot.  Afterward they have to just lay  
against each other for a while, and keep kissing, while their bodies  
get used to the feel of each other.  To this nakedness.  Not quite  
sure what to make of another man's cock against his, and against his  
belly, for the first minute.  He pulls back for a second, stares up at  
Shatty and brushes a strawberry strand out of his face.  Gasps when  
Shatty catches the side of that hand in his mouth and sucks it.

Whatever other skills he's got, Shatty's a master at making out, and  
flexible in ways that Julio couldn't even have guessed, because he  
didn't even notice the man shift before he got the sunscreen pressed  
into his hand.  For a second, he has this idea for a full-body massage  
using it.  Then looks up into eyes turned blue and gets it.

"Oh."

Softly, "Please."

And he isn't sure he can do this.  Not even with the armload of  
beautiful friend pressed against him.  One of those you-bet-your-ass-  
scared things.

"Please, Julio."

"I don't think I can."

"Please.  I have done this before.  It won't hurt me."

Beat.  "You?"

Wide silver-blue.  "Of course.  Why . . ."

"You aren't the one who looks like a girl."

"You do not look like a girl, Julio."  Shakes his long, messy hair  
loose over his shoulders for emphasis.  

"Gracias."  Almost not-sarcastic.  Trying to keep control of his body  
now that it's gone crazy with the idea that they could do this.

"De nada."  Which was definitely a joke, though not a good one.    
Laughing while Julio flips him onto his back and kisses him down into  
the mattress.  Still laughing while he rolls onto his belly and  
spreads his legs.

The first finger that goes in takes a while.  If Shatty's done this  
before, it was a long time ago, and possibly not in this body.  Just a  
fingertip makes him gasp, and his breathing through the pain is  
obvious.  It should be enough to stop them, but Julio's entranced by  
this new touch, and as long as Shatty keeps whispering for him to go  
on, he's going to.

Deep with that finger, eventually.  Finds something hard that makes  
Shatty twist under him.  Discovers he can massage that spot and have  
his partner relax, enough that the second finger doesn't cause nearly  
as much pain as the first.  And once it's in, they can play.  Rubbing  
the small, hard place.  Twisting the rest of his hand down to stroke  
Shatty's balls gently, to caress the thin skin behind them.    
Whispering *bello, bello, bonito* into the pink-white-freckledness of  
his skin and watching Star move towards the brush of Julio's breath.

He pulls both fingers out and tries to figure how they're going to do  
this.  Gets faced with a fully-aroused, kneeling Shatterstar who  
slicks him with a palmful of sunscreen.  Wonderful hands on his cock,  
intense enough that he has to grind his teeth to keep from giving it  
up right there.

Then those hands cup his chin and kiss him again.  Cocoa-butter and  
sex up close to his nose, the smell almost overpowering.  Pushing him  
to lean back just a bit while Star crawls into his lap.  Knees on  
other side of his hips.  One hand gone from his jaw to steady his  
cock, and then Star slides down onto him.

Hisses.  Very still, back arched for a second.  Not really loose  
enough to have just pushed down like that, put not giving up either,  
and still hard.  Forehead against his forehead while Shatty slides  
down onto him.  Julio doesn't exactly know what he can do to ease    
this, except massage Star's belly and lower back, and kiss his chest.    
Whisper to him that he's beautiful and brave.  That he wants him.  He  
keeps swallowing *amo* or burying it in open-mouthed kisses pressed to  
Star's chest.

Finally down in his lap, their arms wrapped around each other so they  
can just about balance.  Fucking deeper than he thought they'd be able  
to go like this.  Slick and warm.  Even trembling against him, Star's  
bright-smelling and soft.  And as he relaxes, some of the secret  
Shatterstar mischief surfaces, and Julio's struck by a big, slightly  
wicked grin, right before Star corkscrews those slick-animal hips down  
hard against him.

He'd do better with something at his back to brace against, but he  
does OK hanging onto Star's waist.  Kissing his chest because it's all  
he can reach except in the moments when Star twists back and down to  
lip-lock them.  No hand free to jerk Star off like he wanted to, but  
he thinks maybe he could suck him, after.  It seems in this moment  
like the only possible way to express how *good* this is.  How much he  
loves the man slowly fucking down against him in his lap.

"Star . . ."

"Quieto, Julio."

"Star . . ."

"Shhh.  Te amo."  Mouth on his, hips slam into his lap, and one of  
Star's hands is between them, working frantically at his cock.  Julio  
wants to tell him not to, only his mouth isn't free, and he was  
desperate for air even before the slick flesh around his cock spasmed  
tight around him.  And once Star's laid back in his arms, almost  
howling, he isn't going to say anything against the moment.

Once Star goes limp, Julio thrusts in again, just once or twice, and  
comes too.  Hard orgasm rocking up from his spine towards the base of  
his skull where one of Star's hands is locked.  Sob-sound out of his  
mouth in that moment, nothing like as manly as he wants it to be, but  
heartfelt.  

Rolls them both down, trying to take care of his weight and Star's  
both with nearly-dead muscles.  Tangles his legs around those long,  
pale ones and holds Star against him.  Nuzzles his shoulder for a bit.

Once the blue-silvers unfog, though, he slides down.  Kisses the  
semen-stained belly and flattens his tongue against it.  Mouths at the  
hair.  Nuzzles the soft cock resting against Star's thigh.

The smell he gets is still, overwhelmingly, one of Shatty's skin.    
Only after that the cocoa-butter of the sunscreen and the warm, slick  
sex-smell that's hanging on both of them.  He goes looking for it in  
the crease of hip and thigh, and then inner thigh, and finally with  
his mouth around the soft cock.  Not sucking, if only because he's  
getting enough whimpers to understand that it's too sensitive for that  
right now, but wetting it and stroking the head gently with his  
tongue.

Just taking care, at this point.  He lets go, eventually, and mouths  
his way back up.  Pauses just beside Star's navel, opens his mouth  
against the skin, and sucks hard.  Rubs the spot with his tongue and  
then pulls at it again.  Feels warmth building under the skin as it  
bruises.  Only pulls back and kisses and resumes working his way up  
when he's sure the mark won't fade for days.

Finishes with his head on Star's belly, looking up at him.  Naked and  
curled up against him.  He's just barely aware that it's getting on  
for night outside.  Thinking how good it would feel to throw the  
curtains open and do this again with cooler air moving over them.    
Just enough of a chill that they could do it under the covers.  Maybe  
this time with him on top, though Star around him like a blanket is  
good.  Maybe just twined around each other and touching.  He'd like a  
few hours or days to map out the details of Star's skin.


End file.
